Shakespeare Week
by The Littlest Ragamuffin
Summary: It's Shakespeare Week at HA, and Sikowitz's class is doing the impossible—producing TWO Shakespearean plays in only five days! Now, Tori and the gang can't play ALL the roles, so some brand-new characters come out of the woodwork to help. Will it be their time to shine, or will everything end in a tragedy of Elizabethan proportions?
1. Introduction

Sikowitz burst into the classroom, wearing tights, a checkered leotard, and an exceptionally frilly collar.

"Greetings, my fair youths!" he announced loudly and with a grand sweep of his arm. "On this day, I hath an announcement of wondrous magnificence for thee!"

"They found a cure for hair loss?!" Cat guessed excitedly.

Sikowitz visibly deflated. "No..."

"Did you find a loving home for a stray cat?" Robbie asked.

"No..."

"You found a new deodorant?" Jade said.

"No! Now all of you shut up!" Sikowitz yelled, dropping his pseud-Elizabethan persona. "Next week, starting Monday, is Shakespeare Week at Hollywood Arts! So, in this class, we will be putting on not one, but TWO productions of the Bard's plays to be preformed that Friday!"

The class was abuzz with chatter. Tori raised her hand.

"But Sikowitz, that's so short! How can we produce two Shakespearean plays in only five days?!"

Sikowitz gave her a long look. "You ask too many questions." He clapped his hands. "Anyway! Auditions are this afternoon, and as my students, all of you are required to participate! You guys"—he gestured to Tori and friend—"will get important roles like you always do."

Then he stepped forward, looking pointedly at the students in the back of the classroom and off to the side. "But you guys, who never speak and only observe. I'm gonna give you all a chance, too. You will preform. You will be known. _You will be given a voice_."

* * *

Author's Note

Short chapter is short, sorry. We meet the new characters next chapter, and don't worry, it has a LOT more substance. Stay tuned!


	2. Friday: The Round-Up

Tori and her friends sat along the edge of the shallow stage in the Black Box Theatre. She talked to Andre while Robbie unsuccessfully flirted with Cat, and Beck and Jade bickered under their breath.

"I'm really curious to find out who's gonna be here," Tori said, swinging her legs. "I mean, I've recognized people in Sikowitz's class, but I've never talked to them there. Like, I dunno, there's something weird about that room..."

"I totally get that," Andre replied. "I know I've talked to a bunch of them outside of class, but it's like there's a curse or something in Sikowitz's room that just blocks 'em out of my mind there."

Tori widened her eyes. "Oh my god, do you think Sikowitz's room is _actually_ cursed?"

Andre shrugged. "Wouldn't surprise me."

Cat leaned over. "One time my brother surprised me."

Tori and Andre looked at her, waiting for her to continue. She blinked.

"And...?" Tori asked.

Cat smiled. "That's it!"

Tori and Andre exchanged a look, when the doors opened and Trina strutted in, followed by a tall girl with a bright red faux-hawk and a sleeveless ACDC shirt.

"Now I _know_ Trina's not in our class," Andre said.

"Hello, people who are less beautiful than me!" Trina trilled. "I'm here to audition!"

Tori groaned. "_Trina_, you weasel your way into _every _production I'm in. Can't you take a day off this _once_?"

Trina's friend tsked at Tori, then put her elbow on Trina's shoulder, leaning on her. "Girl, you should be nice to your big sister."

"Wait, Zara," Tori said, "are you in Sikowitz's class?"

Zara put her other hand on her hip and pretended to look shocked. "Tori Vega, I practically live at your house, and you haven't even _noticed _that I'm in your class? I am so very, _very_ hurt. I may have to do something _horrible_ to your shampoo next time I'm over." Zara gave an overly dramatic 'I'm watching you' gesture and walked away with Trina.

Zara was Trina's best (and, let's face it, only) friend. They looked like an odd couple—Zara was a full head taller than Trina and had a bit of a grunge style, what with her short bright red hair, eyebrow ring, and edgy thrift-shop clothing—very different from Trina's designer clothes. But despite their different styles, the two were actually very similar. They were bold and loud, never afraid to speak their mind or have a good time. Many other people found them off-putting, but for each other, they were perfect.

They began going through their pre-audition warm-ups while Tori and Andre watched out of curiosity.

Hopping around to loosen up, Zara said, "Okay, let's warm up the vocal chords!" She and Trina began making the strangest sounds possible, ranging from whale songs to something resembling a yowling cat.

"Aaaaand, mirror exercise!" Trina called out. She then began to strike the silliest poses possible, sticking out her butt, walking like Frankenstein, and flailing around while Zara did her best to keep up and imitate Trina's movements.

While those two continued on with their silliness, three more girls entered the Black Box. Two were deep in conversation while the other shyly trailed behind.

"But Autumn, the new Gatsby movie is _amazing,_" the first girl said. She looked like a feather, from her light, crimped brown hair to her long and willowy limbs. It was as if the only things keeping her from blowing away were her heavy sweater and armful of books.

"It's not _that_ good, Cassie. It's way too over-the-top," Autumn responded. She was short and petite, and though she was thin, she looked much more grounded than Cassie. Autumn wore hipster glasses and a cardigan with skinny jeans, and gave off a very down-to-earth vibe.

"But that's point!" Cassie insisted, sitting down in the second row. "It's the twenties, and it's following Nick's journey. Everything's so crazy at first because that's what _life_ was like back then. But as the story progressed and he finds out things aren't as perfect as they seem, the cinematography becomes way more subdued. It's beautiful and tragic."

Autumn took her seat next to her. "I guess, but to me it's still too much. And I think I just love the book too much to _ever_ like a movie adaptation."

Cassie leaned over Autumn to talk to the third girl, sitting low in the next seat. "Ellie, what do you think? Did you like the Gatsby movie?"

Ellie looked up with her wide hazel eyes. "It was okay. I mean, I've never read the book, but I thought the story was interesting enough." She smirked. "Although the best part was definitely Leonardo DiCaprio. I could watch him for forever."

"Yeah..." Autumn and Cassie sighed dreamily, looking off in the distance.

As the three discussed the finer points of _The Great Gatsby_, three more girls entered the Black Box Theatre. One girl, Lela, was very short and quite curvaceous, with shoulder-length auburn hair sticking out from beneath her gray beanie. The other girl, Borislava (Bori for short), was a head taller than her, had an athletic build, and wore comfortable baggy clothes. Following them was a tiny Chinese girl named Jamie. The three sat in the back of the Black Box Theatre.

Lela pulled the beanie down over her eyes and groaned. "This is gonna suuuuck."

"I know how you feel," Bori said. Her voice had a Russian accent. "My English is much better than it used to be, but I will _not_ be able to memorize Shakespeare's English."

Lela pulled up her beanie. "Don't worry, you won't have to do much, 'cause I don't think Sikowitz will give either of us big parts. I mean, he's crazy, but he's not _that_ crazy."

"I'm not sure I would call Sikowitz crazy," Jamie said in her quiet voice. "Just a bit...eccentric."

"Yeah, if by eccentric you mean coo-coo for Coco Puffs."

"Does Sikowitz even know our names?" Bori asked.

Lela scoffed. "Doubt it. He's been hitting the coconut juice _really_ hard this year." She crossed her arms and looked around. "I don't even _like _acting, and I don't want to be stuck here for hours after school every day next week. Especially with people like _that_." She pointed to Trina and Zara, who were embracing their inner animal by crawling around on the floor and growling at each other.

"They are like wild creatures..." Bori mused. She got her expensive Sony camera out of her bag and trained it on Trina and Zara, snapping a couple of pictures.

"That's rather rude," Jamie said.

"You're so weird, Bori," Lela said. "You shouldn't just take pictures of random people without asking them first. That's creepy."

"But Lela, look at how much they are like the homeless dogs I photographed this weekend." Bori showed her the screen and flipped back and forth between the photos.

Lela laughed. "Okay, that is freakishly similar. You're a pretty good photographer, Bori."

"Thank you."

"Take a picture of me! I can look like an animal too." Lela bared her teeth and held up her hands, fingers curled into claws. Bori laughed and trained her camera on her.

As Bori took pictures of Lela, Jamie played with the ends of her short black hair. Jamie had only been at HA for a couple of weeks, and didn't quite fit in. She was glad that she at least had Lela, who was in her ballroom dance classes and had taken Jamie under he wing, showing her around school and eating with her at lunch. Even so, Jamie was exceptionally reserved, and felt unneeded with Lela and her friends. She sometimes wondered if it was the right choice to leave her prep school and go to HA.

Jamie looked over as the door opened, and in walked Sinjin and a girl, Rosa, with olive-toned skin and long, dark curly hair.

"Most people think that collecting teeth is really weird, but they just don't know how _cool_ it actually is," Sinjin said enthusiastically. "You should come to my house and see it some time. You might like it."

Rosa looked around the room, desperate to get away from Sinjin. "No thank you," she said, with a light Italian accent. "I'm not really interested in teeth." She stepped away from him.

"Are you sure?" He stepped closer to her. "You like planes, don't you? I have an incisor from one of the Wright Brothers—you'd love it!"

"No, really, I'd rather—" Rosa was cut off as Cat bounced her way over to her.

"Rosie, oh my goodness! I never realized you were in my improv class!" Cat threw her arms open wide and was about to envelop Rosa in a hug, but Rosa flinched and Cat stopped short.

"Oh, right," Cat said slowly. "I forgot you don't like hugs... Can I give you a little hug?"

Rosa smiled. "Yes, of course. A little hug."

"Yay!" Cat lightly wrapped her arms around Rosa's shoulders and nuzzled her cheek against her shoulder. Cat stepped back and looked at Sinjin. She then leaned closer to Rosa, eyes still trained on the creepy boy, and whispered, "Why is Sinjin standing there?"

"Well," Sinjin answered, unaware that the question was not directed towards him, "I was showing Rosa where the Black Box was, and we had a lovely conversation on the way down here about—"

"Goodbye, Sinjin," Cat said, pinching the fabric of Rosa's shirt and leading her away. They sat together in the first row.

"You know," Rosa said, "I think Sinjin has Aspergers, too."

"Really? I always thought he was just weird."

"Well, yes, but think about it. He and I are both socially awkward, and even though I tried leaving nonverbal cues like the ones you told me about—you know, crossing my arms and purposefully not making eye contact—he still kept talking. And he's really obsessed with teeth and puppets. It's kinda scary."

"Yeah..." Cat said. "Just...don't talk to him anymore." Cat clapped her hands, and reached into her bag. "And look at what I have for you! I saw it at the store and thought you would like it." Cat held out a necklace. It was a simple golden chain with a hot-air balloon pendant.

Rosa gasped. "Oh my goodness, I love it! I hardly have anything with hot-air balloons—this is so cool!" Rosa put the necklace on, and even though the feel of the chain around her neck was uncomfortable, she didn't care.

Cat giggled and clapped. "I'm so glad you like it, Rosie!"

"I do! Thank you so much! Hey, did you know that the hot air balloon was actually the first successful flight craft that carried a person? I mean, of course there were all of Leonardo da Vinci's plans, but those never _actually_ made it into the air. We think. But there were these two brothers in France who got the idea for a hot air balloon..."

Rosa continued to ramble on about the history of hot air balloons while Cat nodded her head and smiled. Rosa was pretty sure that Cat wasn't listening whenever she went off on her long-winded rants about aircraft. But Cat never walked away or interrupted (well, more often than usual), so it was okay. Rosa just loved everything about traveling the sky—it was so _fascinating_! She was glad that Cat understood her passion and let her talk. That was one of the reasons why Cat was her best friend.

Rosa was cut off when another girl sat next to Cat.

"Hey, have I missed anything?" she asked. She was an incredibly beautiful half-Asian girl—she had pale skin and a round face with bright dark brown eyes. Her shiny jet-black hair had streaks of read and reached her waist.

Cat shook her head. "No, nothing yet. Sikowitz still hasn't shown up. And hey, have you met Rosa?"

"I don't think so." The girl held out her hand to Rosa. "I'm Gwen, nice to meet you."

Rosa smiled and reluctantly put her hand in Gwen's. "I'm Rosa." She grimaced when Gwen squeezed her hand and shook it.

Trina caught sight of Gwen and pointed her out to Zara. "OMG, Zara, look who's here! I have to go say hi. Do I look okay? How's my hair? Anything in my teeth?" Trina bared her teeth and Zara examined them.

"You're good."

"Sweet!" Trina rushed over to Gwen, trying to appear casual but ended up tripping and falling across her, Cat, and Rosa's laps. Rosa panicked and pushed Trina off her and onto the floor. Trina tried to coolly play off the incident by propping her head on her hand and smiling at Gwen. "Hey, girl, just thought I'd drop by..."

Gwen smiled and rolled her eyes. "Hi, Trina."

It was no secret that Trina wanted to be Gwen's best friend. Gwen was talented, beautiful, and, most of all, rich—everything Trina loved. So far, Trina had been unsuccessful in her endeavors, but Gwen found her amusing at any rate.

Before Trina could respond, Jade stepped over her, with Beck following, and sat down next to Gwen.

"Okay, weekend plans," Jade said. "Beck, you, me, and whatever boytoy you want to bring: we go to Nozu tonight for sushi, then we sneak into that dance club on twelfth street. Sound good?"

Gwen bit her fingernail. "Sorry, I already have plans."

"Yeah, me too," Beck said.

"God!" Jade yelled. "What is wrong with you two?!" She got up and stormed away. Gwen and Beck raised their eyebrows at each other and smirked. In actuality, they were going to Beck's that night to watch a movie. Beck wasn't cheating on Jade—he and Gwen were just friends—but he didn't want Jade to know. He knew she would overreact.

Jade threw open the door, almost knocking two people over. She didn't bother to apologize. One of the boys scoffed and, straightening his dress, said in an airy British accent, "How rude. Jade is normally _much_ nicer to me."

"You'll be fine, Al," the other boy said, his voice much deeper. He brushed away Al's snow-white bangs and kissed his translucent forehead.

Al smirked and walked into the Black Box. He and his boyfriend, Adair, sat in the back row, off to the side. They were an interesting couple, and mostly kept to themselves. Adair was conventionally attractive, tan and muscular, but tended to blend into the crowd. Al, on the other hand, always stuck out. He was an albino with light pink eyes and was almost six feet tall. He was slim and had a narrow face—very delicate and feminine. He played up his femininity by wearing women's clothing, which, to him, were vastly more attractive than men's. Although he was biologically male, he let everyone at HA assume that he was a girl, and they called him Aly. Going along with the assumptions made life easier, because he could dress how he wanted, without the social stigma of being a cross-dresser.

"I'm _starving_," Al said, leaning against Adair. "Make me pasta when we get home."

"No problem," Adair said, putting his arm around Al. "With the avocado-pesto sauce?"

"Oh, of course." Al traced a finger along Adair's hand. "You know just what I like."

Sikowitz burst into the Black Box, still wearing his Shakespearean costume.

"So sorry I'm late, children!" He hopped up on the stage and looked around, squinting. "Is everybody here? I can't tell. How many people are in my class aside from Tori and her five friends?" Some students raised their hands. Sikowitz waved them off. "Ah, whatever, I'm sure you're all here. Any questions before we begin?"

Autumn raised her hand. "What plays will we be preforming?"

Sikowitz shook his finger at her. "Now, now, that's a secret... I don't want to spoil the madness of next week by telling you all so you can go home and _prepare!_ That would ruin the point of the five-day production. Also, I haven't decided on the plays yet. That's rather important, too."

Autumn pouted. "Fine..."

"Okay then, let's get started!" He pointed at Ellie. "You, slouchy one with pigtails. You obviously don't want to be onstage, so you might as well get it over with."

Ellie widened her eyes. "Me, really? I...I don't..."

Sikowitz hopped off the stage. "I'm the teacher, so do as I say. ONSTAGE!"

Ellie gulped and, shaking, stood up. She put one foot in front of the other, the short trek to the stage dragging out into eternity. She took deep breaths, unable to calm herself. _It's just one little audition_, she told herself. _Just a few words_. And yet, when she looked out at the twenty people in front of her, her heart began to race, the room began to spin, and she crumpled onto the floor, unconscious.

* * *

Author's Note.

Unlike Sikowitz, I DO know which plays they're preforming. Don't worry about that. Also, it's not even going to be that big a surprise, as they're two of the Bard's most famous plays... (Guess which ones. Guess.)

Also, I'd like to thank my collaborators for the use of their characters:

CatHeartsU—Autumn  
Miss Amelia Young—Ellie  
Happily Ending—Cassie  
Another Dead Hero—Zara  
HoAcrazylover—Gwen  
Aster Williams—Al and Adrian  
RosemaryAlysse—Lela  
Futatsu—Bori  
Hobgoblin73—Jamie  
Twin Masks—Rosa

You all are awesome and I cannot thank you more for lending me the use of your characters! :)


	3. Friday: Auditions

"Sweet Mary Moses!" Sikowitz yelled, stepping nervously around Ellie. "Somebody get the nurse! Call an ambulance! Get the principal! ...Actually, don't get the principal, I don't want to lose my job... But SOMEBODY, do something!"

Autumn walked over and hopped up onstage, crouching over Ellie. "She'll be _fine_, this just happens sometimes when she's in front of a crowd." She lightly hit Ellie's cheeks, speaking softly to her. She reached into her tote bag and took a water bottle, then splashed Ellie with a few drops.

Ellie opened her eyes and propped herself up on her elbows. She looked around, then put her hand over her eyes. "Oh my God, this is so embarrassing..."

Sikowitz just cleared his throat. "Uh, that's all I needed to see... You can just...go sit down."

Autumn led Ellie offstage, her arm protectively around Ellie's shoulders.

"Do you wanna go sit outside?" Autumn asked Ellie. "We can talk out there."

"No," Ellie said, shaking her head. "I'll be fine." She sat down next to Cassie, who comfortingly placed a hand on Ellie's knee.

Sikowitz clasped his hands. "Okay, then! Moving on. Uh, do I have any volunteers?"

Trina hopped up onstage. "ME! Prepare to be blown away, Mr. Sikowitz!"

He sighed. "Trina, go home. I don't need to see you."

"Wait, really?"

"_Really._"

"Wow, um, okay then." Trina stepped down and sat next to Zara. She whispered excitedly, "Did you hear that?! Sikowitz already knows that I'm such an _amazing_ actress, he doesn't even need to see me audition! How awesome is that?!"

"Fantastic," Zara said, giving Trina a fist-bump. She liked to entertain Trina's delusions of talent. Trina always looked so pretty when she was smug and happy.

"Any other volunteers?" Sikowitz asked. A few students raised their hands. "Um, you, only boy in this class I don't recognize."

Adair stood up and made his way to the stage. "Sikowitz, what exactly do you want me to preform?"

He waved his hand dismissively. "Oh, I dunno, that one monologue from Hamlet that every acting student should know. To be or...whatever it is."

Adair nodded and hopped up onstage. He pulled at his leather collar (Al bought it for him a few months ago and now made him wear it all the time). Adair always felt a bit nervous when he was alone onstage, though he certainly was more together than Ellie. Adair cleared his throat and, looking at his hands, began speaking.

"To be or not to be," he spoke, voice barely above a whisper, "that is the question." Lifting one hand up, his voice slowly growing louder, he continued, "Whether 'tis nobler in the mind to suffer the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune, or to take arms against a sea of troubles, and by opposing—" he clenched his raised hand into a fist and dropped his voice to a whisper, "—end them." He looked out at the audience, speaking to them, sweeping his hand around. "To die... to sleep... No more! And by a sleep to say we end the heart-ache and the thousand natural shocks that flesh is heir to. 'Tis a consum—"

"Yeah, yeah," Sikowitz said, "That's good. You can take your seat now."

"Oh, okay," Adair said. He did a little bow and went back to sit next to Al.

"You!" Sikowitz said, pointing at Al, "Unearthly pale person. Your turn."

Al bit the end of his nail and coyly tilted his head. "Now, a little issue... I don't know the 'To Be Or Not To Be' soliloquy."

Sikowitz sighed. "Do you have any monologue you can recite?"

"Nope, so sorry, sir. I'm a makeup artist, not an actor."

Sikowitz sighed louder. "Then why are you taking this class?!"

"Graduation requirements."

Sikowitz muttered under his breath. "Never mind then, I'll just give you a small role. Next!" He continued through the back row, pointing at Bori. "Your turn, 'To Be Or Not To Be.'"

"Um..." Bori cleared her throat. "I do not know it."

"Does ANYBODY know this most famous work of Shakespeare?!" Sikowitz bellowed. Tori and her friends raised their hands. "Not you! Somebody I've never noticed before?"

Gwen confidently raised her hand, and Cassie meekly raised hers.

"Okay, you, girl next to Beck, and then the waif-like one. Show me what you got!"

Gwen strode onto the stage and looked out at the other students. She flipped her long, lustrous hair over her shoulder, straightened her figure-hugging red dress, and began loudly and boldly, "To be or not to be!" She took a step forward and pointed at the audience. "That is the question." She held out her hands dramatically on either side of her and continued, "Whether 'tis nobler in the mind to suffer the _slings and arrows of outrageous fortune_, or to take arms against a _sea of troubles_ and by opposing..." Gwen paused, leaning forward, and exclaimed, "end them!" She leaned her face on her hand, looking up at the ceiling as if in deep contemplation. "To die, to sleep... No more." She looked out at the audience, shaking her head, and continued, "And by a sleep to say we end the _heart-ache_ and the _thousand natural shocks_ that flesh is heir to. 'Tis a consummation, _devoutly_ to be wished." She looked up at the ceiling again and sighed. "To die... to sleep... To sleep, perchance to _dream_. Ay, there's the rub—"

"Okay, that's good," Sikowitz said.

"Really? Because I know the whole thing and I'd think it'd be great if—"

"_That's good_. Other girl, your turn."

Cassie took Gwen's place, carefully stepping over to the stage, her footfalls silent. She looked out at the audience and took a deep breath. She always felt so nervous during auditions—much more so than during the actual play. She played with her necklace for a moment, then put her hands behind her back, closed her eyes, and let the words of Shakespeare flow through her.

"To be or not to be, that is the question," she began, her voice so pure it almost sang. "Whether 'tis nobler in the mind to suffer the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune, or to take arms against a sea of trouble, and by opposing, end them..."

Cassie made no grand movements as Adair and Gwen had. Her speech was free of Gwen's affectations, and she simply let the words roll off her tongue, her voice rising and falling like the ebbing of a wave. By the way she spoke, it was evident that she knew the piece inside and out, and perhaps had thought about it a bit too often. Her voice was light and airy when speaking of sleep, and dark and bitter of the whips and scorns of time. Sikowitz and the rest of the class were entranced, and he let her recite the entire piece.

"And thus the native hue of resolution is sicklied o'er with the pale cast of thought, and enterprises of great pith and moment with regard their currents turn awry, and lose the name of action," Cassie finished, opening her bright green eyes at last. The class clapped, and she stepped offstage.

"That was...actually quite excellent," Sikowitz said. "Okay then! Who's next?"

Zara jumped up. "Me!" Before Sikowitz could say anything, she bounded out of her seat and up onto the stage.

"Okay," she said, standing with her feet wide apart and her thumbs hooked through the belt loops of her cut-off jeans. "Like, I dunno very much Shakespeare stuff, but I helped out a friend last semester for her final in Film Directing, and I had a pretty _awesome_ monologue, even though it's kinda short. I played this, like, crazy old lady with two dozen cats. In this scene, I'm yelling at this kid who wants to help me take care of my cats."

Zara closed her eyes and took a breath to center herself, then stooped over and adopted a Southern drawl with the quavering overtone of the elderly.

"Now listen here, sonny-boy, I nevah asked for no assistance, not even up before Marty found hisself a dumb broad with legs as long as the Mississippi river and _left_ me." She tottered closer to the edge of the stage, pointing out. "And I've gotten along jus' fine for these past two decades, so don't you go makin' believe that jus' 'cause I'm gettin' old and infirm that I'm in need helpin'! Me and my cats gots enough canned beans and cat food to last us two apocalypses, so I dun need any help, 'specially from city types like you. I know you dun give a damn 'bout an ol' gizzard like me, y'all jus' want somma that ol' 'com-mun-ity ser-vice' so them fancy colleges think you's more special than all them other kids. I can tell you's jus' a dumb Wall street-aspirin' kid, and you dun truly care for no one but yourself, not even yer own momma. You's just like Marty, you is! I dun need you! My cats dun need you! And when ya get out in the world, you'll find there ain't nobody else that need you! Now get outta my house!"

Zara then straightened up and did a little curtsy before hopping off the stage.

Trina patted her heart and wiped away a tear. "That was always my favorite part. You always have such passion. Beautiful job, Zara!"

Zara grinned and casually slung her arm over the back of Trina's chair. "Thanks, girl."

"I guess that was okay," Sikowitz said. He looked at his watch. "Great Gandhi, is it that late already?" He surveyed the rest of the crowd. "Uh, Tori, Beck, Andre, Cat, Robbie, Trina, and Sinjin, you all go home."

"What, why?" Tori asked.

"_Because I know you_. I have no idea whether the rest of these kids are decent actors. I've never even seen them before! Sweet pumpernickel, it's just redundant and no longer amusing to keep saying that. Go home!"

The group muttered to each other and walked out.

"Now, everyone who hasn't auditioned, get up onstage!"

Autumn, Rosa, Bori, Lela, and Jamie did as he said and lined up.

"Okay, how should I do this...Um, going down the line, pretend you just got your dream job, what do you do?"

Autumn pretended she was holding a paper. "Oh my goodness, the critics and the public love my album! I'm going to be famous!" She hugged the imaginary paper to her chest and did a little twirl.

"Lovely, next."

Rosa held her arms out the side and began running around the stage. "Nyoom, nyoom, I'm flying an airplane!"

Sikowitz blinked. "...Are you okay, kid? Whatever, next."

Bori stood there awkwardly, unsure of what to say. "Um, yay, I am very happy to have my dream job...?"

"Sure you are. Short and chubby, you're up!"

"Excuse me?" Lela said, putting her hands on her hips indignantly. "_What_ did you just say to me? I will let you know, that I will _not_ be referred to as 'short and chubby'! I am a ballroom dancer and dedicated athlete—I'm a powerhouse of _muscle_! I will _not_ tolerate you making comments about my body. That is just _rude_ and _inappropriate_, especially for a teacher!" Before Sikowitz could respond, Lela stormed offstage and out of the room.

He looked at the rest of the students. "Uh...let's pretend that that never happened. Just...next."

Jamie shuffled her feet. "Well, I don't know what career path I want to take, so I'm not really sure how to answer this. I mean, I love dancing, but academics are still incredibly important to me and my family and—"

"Okay, that's fine. You all, get out of here. I'll let you know who's playing who in class on Monday. Goodbye!"

The students grabbed their bags and went out in the hallway, chatting.

"That was a great performance, Cassie," Autumn said. "I didn't know you were so into Hamlet!"

Cassie shrugged. "Well, I'm not as good as Branagh. But Ellie!" she said, turning to her friend and placing a hand on her shoulder. "Really, are you okay? You almost fell off the stage..."

Ellie waved Cassie's hand away. "I'm _fine_, really. He just put me on the stage so suddenly that I overreacted, that's all. It's not like I broke my arm or anything."

Autumn hooked her arm through Ellie's. "Come on, we'll go to the archery range tonight and shoot at posters of Justin Beiber and Voldemort."

Ellie smirked. "Okay, that sounds like fun."

Cassie looked down at her bag. "Ah, bucket of prostitution! I forgot my book in the Black Box. I'll see you guys later!"

They were about to walk out the door when Jade came down the hall.

"Wait," she said. "Where are you all going?"

"Auditions just ended," Autumn answered.

"What?! Oh my God, I get mad at Beck and leave the room for five minutes, and I _miss_ the auditions? You gotta be kidding me..."

Autumn waved her hand. "Jade, don't sweat it. None of your other friends auditioned, since Sikowitz already knows you guys."

Jade crossed her arms. "I guess..."

"Well hey, do you want to come to the archery range with us? We're gonna go shoot at posters of Justin Beiber." Autumn nudged Jade with her free elbow.

Jade tried to mask her smile and sighed, pretending to think about it. "I dunno... I mean, I guess I don't have any other plans, so...why not."

"Awesome! It's off to the range we go!" The three walked out the door, and Autumn was ecstatic that she was hanging out with Jade again. The two had been best friends all throughout elementary school and junior high, but had drifted apart when they started going to Hollywood Arts. They still hung out every now and again, but for the most part their paths rarely crossed. They never had a falling out, they simply got caught up in their different lives. Nonetheless, Autumn still considered Jade one of her best friends, even if Jade didn't feel the same way.

Elsewhere, Zara was running down the hall in the opposite direction.

"Yo! Lela! Wait up!" she yelled.

"Zaraaaaa, I can't run in these heels!" Trina whined, stumbling after her.

Lela turned around. "Yeah?"

Zara stopped, leaning on her knees and catching her breath. "I just wanted to say that that was _awesome_ how you told off Sikowitz. Like, totally, he shouldn't say stuff like that. And even though I'm sure he didn't mean anything _super_ bad by it, kudos to you for calling him out!" Zara held out her fist and Lela lightly fist-bumped her.

"Thanks. I'm glad no one thought I looked like an idiot."

"Definitely not!"

Trina finally caught up to them, throwing her arms around Zara's shoulders and collapsing dramatically. "I hate these shoes! Ugh. Anyway, hey Lela! That was cool what you did back there. Totally something _I _would've done, too."

Lela smiled. "Thanks."

"Well, hey, me and Zara are heading to the mall—do you wanna come along?"

Lela's smile broke out into a grin. "Yeah, sure! I'd love to." She felt a little embarrassed for laughing at them earlier—though a bit eccentric, they both seemed so nice and fun!

"Fantastic!" Trina said, letting go of Zara. "Let's go then, chicas! Pizza's on Zara." Trina strode down the hall, with the two following.

Zara rolled her eyes, smiling to herself. She'd buy Trina as much pizza as she wanted—it was a fair exchange for getting to watch Trina try on all those beautiful clothes.

Down the hall, Gwen, Beck, Rosa, Robbie, and Cat were hanging out at Cat's locker.

"I can't believe I forgot my combination!" Cat whined. "Robbie, can you put my combination in?" The boy didn't respond. "Robbie?" Cat hit him. "Robbie!"

"Whoa, what'd I do?"

"You know my combination, put it in for me!"

Gwen raised her eyebrow. "Why do you know Cat's combination?"

Robbie blushed. "No reason..." He hastily turned the dial and opened the door for Cat.

"You were really spacing out there," Beck noticed. He lightly elbowed Robbie. "Thinking of anybody?"

He shook his curly head. "What, no, of course not. Who would I be thinking of, psh... Definitely not a beautiful girl..."

"Robbie, you're so silly!" Cat said, taking her book out of her locker, then bobbing him on the nose.

"Well, I wasn't thinking of you," Robbie said.

Rosa laughed. "_Right._ Robbie, I barely pick up on _anything_, and even I can see that you have a crush on Cat."

Robbie blushed, and Cat jumped up and down, already on a completely different train of thought. "Guys, I wanna see a movie! Will you four come?"

Gwen winced. "Well, I already have plans..."

"Yeah, me too..." Beck said.

"Oh, right," Cat said. "I forgot you two always hang out in secret." Robbie and Rosa exchanged a look, and Cat put her hand over her mouth. "Whoops, I didn't just say that..."

"No, look, you guys," Gwen said. "Beck and I are _just friends_. We just like hanging out together, but Jade would get mad and think something was up, so we just want her to know. I _really_ don't want to deal with a Jade-freakout. So, please, don't tell her."

"No problem," Rosa and Robbie said.

"Okay, great," Gwen said. "Um, Beck, let's just go now."

They said their goodbyes and walked out the school together.

"I told you telling Cat was a bad idea," Beck hissed.

"Shut up. I told her when I was drunk once, it was an accident! And this is the first time she's let it slip. And besides, it's Robbie and Rosa. They pretty much only hang out with Cat, so it's not like they have anyone to tell..."

Beck ran his hand through his hair. "I have a bad feeling about this..."

Back in the school, Cat leaned against her locker and pouted. "Whoops. Well, do you guys want to go to a movie with me.?"

The two nodded.

"What movie are you guys seeing?" Sinjin asked, peeping out from around the corner.

Cat and Rosa jumped and held onto each other. "Nothing..." Rosa said.

"Can I come?" Sinjin asked earnestly. "It'd be like a double date!"

"Sorry, Sinjin," Rosa said, "but, um..."

"It's a date for me, Cat, and Rosa," Robbie said, putting his arms around their shoulders. "We've decided to try out a polyamorous relationship."

Sinjin raised his eyebrows. "Oh, okay... Have fun, then." He walked away, muttering, "And people think _I'm_ weird..."

Cat pushed Robbie's arm off her. "That's gross, Robbie."

He shrugged. "At least it got Sinjin away. Anyway, onward to the cinemas!" The three walked out of the school, passing by, but not noticing, Al and Adair. They leaned agains the side of the building, and Adair had a cigarette in his hands.

Al bit his lip. "Darling, _must_ you continue on with that filthy habit? It's so bad for your health, and it makes you smell terrible..."

Adair breathed out slowly, letting out a stream of smoke. "Sorry, Al, but I'm so nervous right now. Sikowitz must have hated my performance. Why else would he have cut me off so soon?"

Al raised his thin, white-blond eyebrows. "Honey, this is for a one-week play. It will be absolute shit no matter what, so it don't worry if you don't get the big part."

"But, Al," Adair leaned closer, Al wincing as he smelled the smoke on his breath. "Don't tell anyone, but earlier today I heard Sikowitz talking to Principal Dubois, and apparently there's going to be a talent scout at both plays. This could be my big chance, Al."

Al took the cigarette out of Adair's hand and tossed it on the ground, then crushed it beneath his elegant high-heeled shoe. "But giving yourself lung cancer isn't going to change anything. Come on, let's go home. I have some lovely ideas for a couple of charcoal sketches that I need you to pose for..." He began to walk away, and Adair followed.

"Wait, Al, I was wondering..." He trailed off as Al turned to look at him with his piercing red eyes.

"Oh, sweetie, can't it wait until after the sketching session?"

Adair slowly nodded his head. "Yeah... I guess it can..."

"Good Adair." Al reached out to his boyfriend and put his hand behind his neck, leading him to their car and back to his home. Adair gave a longing look to the grassy knoll of the graveyard down the street. He supposed he would have to visit his brother some other time.

* * *

Author's Note.

Yay, chapter two! Sorry it's kinda lengthy; still establishing character relationships and basic conflicts... Anyway, the next chapter will be the first rehearsal! So stay tuned!


	4. Monday: Romeo and Juliet

Students were abuzz with chatter as they waited for Sikowitz to enter his classroom with the cast list.

"Man, I really hope one of the plays is Othello," Andre said.

"Why?" Tori asked.

"Dude, hello, Othello's pretty much _always_ black, and who's the only black guy in the room?"

Tori nodded. "Good point."

"I hope one of the plays is Hamlet," Cassie said. "I've always wanted to play Ophelia."

"I don't care _what_ plays we have," Trina said, "as long as I get to star in it."

"Wait...don't you have class right now?" Tori asked.

Trina shrugged. "It's just precalc, who cares?"

Sikowitz, wearing a red Elizabethan costume with ridiculously puffy golden sleeves, burst through the door. "Whatever guesses you were just making about the plays and casting were most probably wrong!" He waved some papers in the air. "I have the lists right here!" He cleared his throat dramatically and announced, "Play one! Romeo and Juliet!" He stopped and looked around, waiting for applause. When he received only the expectant stares of the students, he continued on. "Romeo: Robbie Shapiro!"

Robbie jumped out of his seat. "Oh my god, are you serious?! That is fantastic! I never get the lead roles!" He grabbed the shoulders of the person closest to him, which happened to be Jamie.

"Please let go of me..." she said. However, Robbie was too caught up in his emotions.

"Did you hear that?! I'm Romeo! I'm Romeo Montague! Romeo _frickin' _Montague! But soft, what light through yonder window breaks OUT OF THE MOLD?! ROBBIE SHAPIRO, THAT'S WHO!" Robbie gave one last jump, fist pumping the air, then sat back down. "Okay, you may continue."

"...Right. Okay, Juliet: Cassie Syens!"

"Really?" Cassie said, her bright green eyes as wide as saucers. "Wow, that's so cool! Thank you so much for casting me as—"

Sikowitz held up his hand. "Okay, guys, please, can I just read through the list in peace? It'll make things go a lot quicker..." Nobody responded, so he continued. "Mercutio: Trina Vega."

"WOOHOO!" Trina cheered. Sikowitz glared at her. "Sorry..."

"Benvolio: Zara Blythe. Tybalt: Tori Vega. Friar Lawrence: Autumn Montgomery. Prince Escalus: Jamie Xiaomeng. Paris: Rosa Vincitori. And finally, Nurse: Andre Harris."

"Wait, what?" Andre said. "I think you made a mistake there..."

Sikowitz looked at the list. "Nope, it's all correct. I'm doing 'gender-blind' casting. It's a bit of a necessity, as there are only five boys in this class. It's not fair to _only_ cast boys in boy roles, and girls in both roles. So, you're the Nurse."

Andre grumbled and sunk down in his chair. "All I wanted was to be the moor of Venice..."

"So, the next play! It is... The Scottish Play!" He glared seriously at every student. "And if _any _of you utter the true name of the play or the title characters, you will be herby banished from my class. Understood?" They all nodded vigorously.

Jade nudged Autumn. "This is awesome. I'm so gonna get Lady M."

Autumn smirked. "_Obviously._"

Sikowitz shushed them and said, "The King: Beck Oliver. Lady M: ...Gwen Long."

"What?!" Jade exclaimed. "How can give _her _that role and not _me_?! I was _born_ to play Lady Macbeth!"

"BANISHED!" Sikowitz yelled, pointing at the door. "Didn't you hear what I _just_ said? Thou shalt not the speak the name! Now, you need to go outside, turn around three times, swear and spit, knock on the door three times, and ask to be let back in."

"That's stupid."

"But necessary! It's the only way to prevent the curse. Go."

Jade picked up her bag and left the room. She didn't come back that period.

"Continuing on, Witch One: Aly Thompson. Witch Two: Borislava Volkova. Witch Three: Cat Valentine. Banquo: Adair Birmingham. Duncan: Lela Fisher. Macduff: Jade West. Porter: Sinjin McCleef. Donalbain: Ellie Hendrix. Any questions?"

Autumn raised her hand. "Um, yeah, what about all the characters you _didn't_ mention? Like, you know, Romeo and Juliet's parents, or Fleance, or Malcolm..."

"Well, in case you haven't noticed, there's a limited selection of students. All those other characters will be played by freshmen."

Before anyone could reply, Sikowitz pulled two stacks of scripts out of his ridiculously puffy sleeve and placed them on the ground. "Grab your scripts! Romeo and Juliet shall rehearse in here, and The Scottish Play in the Black Box. No time to lose! Ready, get set, GO!"

The students casually stood up and grabbed their plays. The Macbeth cast members walked out, looking over their plays. Autumn shoved her hands into the pockets of her dark yellow cardigan as she watched the other students leave. _Of course Jade was going to be in the other play..._ she thought. She and Jade were finally hanging out again after months of barely even talking, and now she was barely going to see her all week. Just her luck.

Robbie was handing out the last of the scripts to the other cast members. "And one for you Tybalt, and one for you, Benvolio, and one for you, Nurse, and...one for you, Juliet."

Cassie smiled. "Thank you, Romeo."

"It's really great that you got the role," Robbie said, awkwardly putting his hands in his pockets, then in his hair, then back in his pockets as he spoke. "I'm really happy for you. I mean, it's a really great part and you'll make a really awesome Juliet, I can tell, and I'm really glad we can, like, work together and stuff..."

"And I'm _really_ glad to work with you," Cassie said, lightly poking his chest.

"Really?"

Cassie giggled a little. "_Really_. And I _really_ think you should stop saying that word, it's a bit redundant."

"Really? What wor—oh. Yeah, sorry."

"It's okay." She smirked at him. "I bet you just wish it was _Cat_ playing Juliet instead, don't you?"

"What—no, I don't—we aren't—I mean, Cat's just...just a friend."

Cassie poked his chest again. "Suuuuure, Robbie. Anyway, I have to start highlighting my lines. I have a lot. And so do you!" Cassie fiddled with her necklace, which was a simple chain with mini sharpies hanging off of it. She pulled off a yellow sharpie and gave it to Robbie. "Here, go work on your lines."

Robbie nodded. "Thanks." He sat down on the edge of the little stage, watching Cassie drift over to Autumn and sit next to her. It figures that Cassie would assume that he had a crush on Cat... And he did, but his feelings had been diminishing ever since Friday. Ever since he saw Cassie audition.

He didn't know what it was about her. She was just so... Hell, he didn't know how to describe her. She was so thin and fragile, and there was something about her that seemed almost otherworldly. Like her mind was off in some distant place, and she was only half observant of the things around her. Cassie seemed so dorky and common, with her sharpie necklace and fandom buttons and bracelet with Christmas lights, but Robbie could tell that there was something to her that was so much deeper than that, especially after her entrancing recitation of Hamlet's soliloquy. And her eyes were such a bright, captivating green. Robbie could only think of the phrase that the eyes are windows to the soul, and if that was true, he knew her soul must be a beautiful thing.

Robbie shook his head. There he went again, waxing poetic about a girl he didn't even have a chance with. He needed to just focus on his lines. He knew Cassie was too good for him, anyway.

Rosa walked over to Robbie. "Hey, do you have a highlighter I could borrow?"

"No, sorry, kinda using this one."

Jamie, who had quietly been sitting her chair the entire time, carefully highlighting all fifteen of her lines, leaned over to Rosa. "I have many highlighters, if you would like to use one."

Rosa smiled. "Thank you!" She sat down next to Jamie, who unzipped her pencil case and pulled out her highlighters, bunched together with a rubber band.

"Wow," Rosa said, looking into the case. All the pencils, pens, and markers were held together with rubber bands. "You keep everything really organized."

"Of course I do. Why shouldn't I? It's much easier than having everything be haphazard. Now, what color do you want?"

"Blue, like the sky," Rosa said. She grinned when Jamie handed it to her. "Thank you! What's your name?"

"Jamie," she replied, going back to highlighting.

"It's so nice to meet you! I'm Rosa."

"Nice to meet you, too." Jamie didn't look up from her script.

"What part do you have?"

"Escalus."

"Oh, cool! I'm Paris. It's not a huge role, but I have a bit of a soft-spot for Paris. I mean, he loves a girl who doesn't love him back, which is pretty sad. Poor guy!"

"Yes, poor Paris..." Jamie didn't want to be rude and tell Rosa to go away, but she was busy with her script. Even though she didn't have a lot of lines, she knew that she would have to get them down perfectly in order to make her mother happy. When Jamie told her mom that her class was putting on a Shakespearean play in a week, her mother yelled out that it was a completely ridiculous idea, and threatened, again, to send her back to prep school. And Jamie really didn't want to go back...

Rosa was still chatting about Paris as Jamie was deep in her thoughts, but then she noticed that Jamie wasn't making eye contact and staring fixedly at her script. "Oh," she said, "you look busy. Sorry! I'll let you get back to that..." Rosa slunk off and sat next to Robbie.

"Hey, congrats on getting the part, by the way!" she said cheerily.

"Thanks," Robbie mumbled flatly, flipping through his script.

Rosa pouted. Nobody wanted to talk to her...

Her phone buzzed, and she saw that her brother, Juan-Pablo, had texted her. She smiled. At least somebody wanted to talk to her!

_Hey,_ the text read. _I have something to tell you. It's very important. Meet me outside of school as soon as you can._

_Okay!_ Rosa replied. _Sounds exciting. See you in a little bit!_

Juan-Pablo didn't text her back, so she began highlighting her script.

As for Trina and Zara, they were already done highlighting and were running through their lines. They were well into Act II Scene I, the first scene of Mercutio and Benvolio alone, where they searched for Romeo.

"I conjure thee by Rosaline's bright eyes," Trina read, her voice flat as she struggled with the archaic wording. "By her high forehead and her scarlet lip, by her fine foot, straight leg, and quivering thigh, and the...demesnes?...that there adjacent lie, that in thy likeness thou appear to us!"

Zara shook her finger at Trina. "And if her hear thee, thou wilt anger him."

"This cannot anger him," Trina replied, her voice uncharacteristically unemotive. "'Twould anger him to raise a spirit in his mistress' circle of some strange nature, letting it there stand 'til she had laid it and conjured it down; that were some spite. My invocation is fair and honest, and in his mistress' name I conjure only but to raise him up."

"No no, stop right there," Zara said. "Trina, do you have any idea what you're talking about here?"

"Psh, of _course_," Trina said, casually waving her hand. "I'm, like, calling out to Romeo, talking about Rosaline, and...and something about raising the devil, I guess."

"Oh boy," Zara said. She slung her arm over Trina's shoulder and led her a seat. "We gotta talk about some sexual innuendo right now."

Trina gave Zara a funny look. "What?"

"Look, I'm no expert on Shakespeare, but to get myself through freshmen English, I wrote an entire essay on innuendoes in this play. Would you believe me if I told you that the lines you just said were absolutely filthy?"

"Oh, come on, Zara. This is _Shakespeare_. He's supposed to be all hoity-toity and high-class and all that chiz."

"Oh, how wrong you are." Zara leaned back in her chair, looking at Trina through lowered lids. "Shakespeare was just a regular playwright who loved himself some dick jokes. He catered to the masses, and just happened to sprinkle in some genius here and there." Zara looked at the script and read, "By 'her quivering thigh and the demesnes that there adjacent lie.' What d'ya think that means?"

"I dunno, wasn't Mercutio just talking about how beautiful Rosaline was?"

"He was _before_, but right here he's talk about her nether regions." Zara smirked at Trina's grimace. "I've know idea what 'demesnes' are, but it's right next to her thigh, so it's, well, you know..." Zara gestured to her cut-off shorts. "Down there. And her thigh's quivering 'cause she's having an orgasm."

Trina grabbed the script from Zara. "No she's _not!_ She's chaste, remember?"

"Well, _duh_. Mercutio was just trying to conjure up the image of Rosaline having some sexy fun times to get Romeo to show up." Zara leaned closer to Trina, pointing at the script. "And then Benvolio says, basically, 'Mercutio, shut up, talking about Rosaline like that will make Romeo mad.' And then Mercutio says, 'No it won't. It would make him mad if I called up a demon or a ghost or whatever for her to have sex with.'"

"You're _kidding_ me. Is that really what this means?"

"It's legit, I swear. Mercutio has some other fun lines, too." Zara flipped through the script. "Like here! 'If love be rough with you, be rough with love; prick love for pricking, and you beat love down.' It's basically the Shakespeare way of saying, 'Dayum, boy, you gotta get _laid_.'"

"No way. I don't get it! Explain it to me."

Zara smirked and launched into her crash-course on the bawdiness of Shakespeare. Seeing Trina's expressions were _priceless_. Trina never really concerned herself with sex (she thought it was too vulgar and beneath her), and so her reactions to Zara's new information were _so_ entertaining. And the entire time Zara was explaining the innuendoes, she couldn't help but think that there was a lot _more_ about sex that she wished she could teach Trina...

Cassie looked around the room, and saw that everybody was doing their own thing. Tori and Andre were rehearsing lines together, as were Autumn and Rosa, Jamie was copying down her lines in a notebook to practice them, and Zara was educating Trina about Shakespeare. So, she walked over to Robbie, who was looking over his lines.

"Hey, Robbie?" she asked.

He looked up, the light reflected in his glasses. "Yeah?"

"Well, everyone else is doing their own thing, so I was wondering if you wanted to go over lines with me?"

He nodded a bit too vigorously. "Yeah, of course."

She sat next to him on the edge of the small stage. "Do you want to do act one, scene five? I mean, it's the first time Romeo and Juliet meet, so it would make sense..."

"Okay, sounds good." Robbie turned to the right page, then looked up briefly at Cassie. _God, why is she so cute_, he thought. He looked back down, and began, "If I profane with my unworthiest hand this holy shrine, the gentle fine is this: my lips, two blushing pilgrims, ready stand to smooth that rough touch with a kiss."

Cassie put her hand over Robbie's, and said, "Good pilgrim, you do wrong your hand too much, which mannerly devotion shows in this; for saints have hands that pilgrims' hands do touch, and palm to palm—" she laced her fingers through his, so their palms touched "—is holy palmers' kiss."

Robbie swallowed hard, his cheeks burning red. He couldn't meet Cassie's eyes, and he could already feel the sweat accumulating on his hand. He pulled his hand away and put it in his pocket. "Have not saints lips, and holy palmers too?"

"Aye, pilgrim, lips that they must use in prayer."

"O, then, dear saint, let lips do what hands do; they pray, grant thou, lest faith turn to despair." He looked up at Cassie, who shyly tucked a strand of her feathery brown hair behind her ear before looking down at her own lines.

"Saints do not move, though grant for prayers' sake."

"Then move not, while my prayer's effect I take. Thus from my lips, by yours, my sin is purged."

Cassie paused, and Robbie began to feel even more jittery.

"Um," he said, clearing his throat a little bit. "It says 'kisses her,' but, you know, you don't have to kiss me if you don't want to..."

Cassie untucked the hair from her ear. "No, no, it's fine. You don't have to kiss me. I mean, it'd probably feel a little awkward for you anyway..."

Robbie mentally kicked himself again. He wanted nothing more than to kiss Cassie, but she thought Cat was in the way. She wasn't even his _girlfriend!_

In a spontaneous moment of bravery, Robbie leaned forward and gave Cassie a quick peck on the cheek. She looked at him in surprise, her big, sparkling green eyes blinking. Robbie then felt like he was going to pass out from nervousness.

"Then have my lips the sin that they have took," Cassie said slowly, her eyes flicking back and forth between Robbie and her lines.

"Sin from thy lips? O trespass sweetly urged! Give me my sin again." He leaned forward again, pecking her on the other cheek.

"You kiss by the book," she said, smiling and putting her fingertips to her cheek. "But you know, you'll have to kiss me on the lips during the actual performance..."

"I know," he said. "But, well, this is just practice. Um, do you want to go over act two, scene two?"

"The balcony scene? Forsooth, I do, my fair Romeo." She gave him a big grin and Robbie gave a small, shy smile back. Was Cassie smiling because she liked him, or because she _like_ liked him? And God, he was seventeen, he couldn't believe he just used the phrase 'like like,' even if it was just an internal monologue. Nonetheless, he continued on, and attempting to flirt with Cassie was one of the most nerve-wracking experiences he ever had. He often tried to flirt with girls, but there was something _different_ about Cassie, and he really didn't want to mess it up.

When the bell rang, he was both relieved and disappointed to bid adieu to her. But he would still see her at the official read-through after school...

While Robbie was muddled in his thoughts, Rosa happily walked out of the classroom and to the Asphalt Café. It was so nice of Juan-Pablo to visit her at school! He was only a year older than her, and went to the public school down the road. She wondered what he had to to tell her.

She smiled and waved when she saw him standing behind the food truck. He held his finger up to his lips. Rosa noticed that he was hunched up and looking over his shoulder, as if he was scared someone would see him. She began to worry.

"Juan-Pablo," she whispered, "is something wrong?"

"Sì," he said. "Rosa, I have to leave. I won't be coming back home."

"What? Why?"

"My friends and I, we...we did something bad. It's not safe for me to stay at home."

"What did you do?"

"It doesn't matter."

"Did you murder somebody?"

Juan-Pablo looked away, and even though he didn't say yes, Rosa knew that that meant it was true.

"_Juan-Pablo_..."

"Don't tell anyone, please, Rosa," he pleaded. "It's nothing, I swear. I just wanted to tell you so that you wouldn't worry. I know how bad you get when things change. Well...this is going to change things a lot. I won't be around, but I'll be safe. Please don't worry about me."

Rosa could feel tears welling up. "Not worry about you? Juan-Pablo, you're my brother—"

"And that's why I need you to keep this secret for me, okay? Everything will be all right, Rosa, I promise." He leaned forward and kissed the top of her head. "I promise. I love you, Rosa."

"I love you, too..." she said, sniffling. He held up his hand and hurried away.

Rosa felt like she was choking. Her brother was leaving, and he...and he had _killed_ somebody. Her chest felt like it was closing up, and all the sounds were too loud. The noise was bombarding her, the chatter like waves crashing into her, each car passing the school like a knife through her ears. She knelt down and got out her noise-canceling headphones. She put them on and leaned against the back of the truck, trying to take deep breaths through her wracking sobs. She stared up at the sky, the blue and white blurring together through her tears. It was still too much. She closed her eyes and buried her head in her hands, and pretended that there was nothing in the world. Nothing.

* * *

Author's Note

Ta da! Hope you enjoyed. :) And poor Rosa—I totally could've ended on the cuteness of Robbie and Cassie, but where's the fun in that? ;) Next chapter, we'll be taking a look at the Macbeth rehearsal! That should be lots of fun...

Please leave a comment! Reviews are much appreciate. ^.^


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